Corbin Burnes Deal Ignites Braves’ Trade Hopes: Corbin Burnes’ Contract Paves Way for Atlanta
Following the deal Corbin Burnes signed with the Diamondbacks, Jordan Montgomery seems to be on his way out the door, and the Braves make some sense as a trade partner.
Arizona beat out several other clubs for Burnes’ services, giving him $35 million a year over six years, a franchise record. It’s made Montgomery expendable, presenting Alex Anthopoulos with an opportunity to buy low on a guy with a track record.
There are several contributing factors to why this makes a lot of sense. The D-Backs are reportedly willing to eat part of Montgomery’s salary to facilitate a trade. He’s set to earn $22.5 million after exercising his player option.
Montgomery finished last season with a putrid 6.23 ERA through 25 appearances and 117.0 innings pitched. It was a foregone conclusion that Montgomery would exercise his player option for 2025, even after he was ridiculed by the owner.
Following the season, Ken Kendrick told Arizona Sports it was “a horrible decision to have invested that money in a guy that performed as poorly as he did. It’s our biggest mistake this season from a talent standpoint, and I’m the perpetrator of that.”
It just doesn’t seem like a relationship that is going to be mended, which is where the Braves come in, because Jordan Montgomery isn’t a 6.23 ERA pitcher. His 4.48 FIP suggests that ERA was a bit inflated; even more, the veteran recorded a 3.48 ERA over the three seasons prior with the Yankees, Cardinals, and Rangers.
